Mumbai: Actress Defrauded of ₹6.5 Lakh in SIM Card Misuse Scam in Oshiwara

A 26-year-old actress from Oshiwara has reportedly been cheated of around ₹6.5 lakh by an unidentified cyber fraudster who threatened her with police action over alleged SIM card misuse. The incident came to light after the actress realised the scam through the Truecaller app and filed a complaint with the Oshiwara Police.

According to police, the complainant, identified as Debchadreem Arun Singharoy, is an actress originally from Kolkata and has been residing in the Gulshan Nagar area of Jogeshwari with her house help for the past five months.

On Monday morning around 9:45 am, she received a phone call from a person claiming to be from Airtel Customer Care. The caller alleged that her SIM card had been “misused on a large scale” and that her personal information had been shared with the Delhi Police. Soon after, the call was supposedly transferred to someone posing as a Delhi Police officer.

The caller informed her that she would soon receive a video call for verification purposes and instructed her to sit alone, not let anyone nearby, and keep her Aadhaar card ready. Around 10:45 am, she received a video call from a man dressed in a police uniform, who asked for her Aadhaar details. He then sent her what appeared to be a Supreme Court notice, claiming that multiple bank accounts had been opened in her name and that her accounts and passport were to be frozen, restricting her from travelling abroad.

The so-called “officer” told her to deposit ₹6.5 lakh into a specified bank account for verification and assured that the amount would be refunded once the investigation concluded. Panicked by the threats, the actress transferred the money from her bank account. The fraudster continued to make video calls afterward, but when she checked the number on Truecaller, it was flagged as a scam number.

Realising she had been duped, the actress approached the Oshiwara Police Station and lodged a complaint. Based on her statement, the police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act against the unidentified cyber fraudster.

Police officials said they are currently tracing the bank account where the money was transferred and efforts are underway to identify and arrest the accused.